The headgear that once defined British civil servants and bankers is returning
to the high street.

Outfitters Austin Reed plan to stock the hats for the first time in 12 years

A spokesman for the firm said it was responding to increased enquiries from customers and added that the hat was "a key piece to communicate effortless British style".

The bowler was born of a wealthy person's idiosyncratic problem in the mid-1800s: how to keep his gamekeeper's head from hitting troublesome branches as he rode round the estate on horseback.

The top hats of the day were inadequate for the job as they were fragile and protruded too far above the head so Edward Coke, the brother of the 2nd Earl of Leicester, asked the hatmakers Lock & Co of St James, in London, to create a sturdy, close-fitting, low crowned hat for the purpose.

Lock in turn commissioned London hatmakers William and Thomas Bowler to fulfil the criteria and they developed "The Bowler".

It is held that when Coke arrived to collect the hat on December 17th 1849 he stamped on the hat twice to test its strength before handing over 12 shillings and leaving satisfied.

The hat was adopted by city workers in the early 1900s and teamed with a coronation buttonhole and walking stick to give the impression of sophistication.

Hollywood has featured it on the heads of gangsters, killers, comedians like Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, and criminals like Alex DeLarge in A Clockwork Orange.

John Steed of The Avengers - the actor Patrick Macnee - wore one when he starred alongside Joanna Lumley in the popular 1970s television revival of the '60s series.

The bowler appeared to have fallen out of favour once more but Robert Downey Junior, the actor, wore one as Sherlock Holmes in the latest big budget adaptation and his co-star Jude Law was recently pictured sporting one.

A spokesman for Austin Reed, which celebrates its 110th anniversary this year, said the firm would initially only stock bowlers in its flagship Regent Street store before selling them around the country.

He said: "We have brought back the bowler hat as a nod to historic, British fashion.

"British design is core to our heritage. Men and women are now looking to history for classic, quality design and tailoring.

"The Bowler Hat is a key piece to communicate effortless British style."

They will then be rolled out around Britain alongside an entire new collection to commemorate the store's anniversary.